Modern Air

"We go where the customer takes us."

These soft-spoken words from six-foot-five-inch James J. Glennon, President of Modern Service, say a great deal about both the man and the company. "I know it's somewhat of a cliché these days, but we are and always have been a customer service -driven organization," says Glennon.

Emerging Roles

Glennon joined Elliot Lewis Corporation, the eventual parent company of Modern, in Philadelphia in 1980. His first job was as head of Automatic Temperature Control and Energy Management Division for the firm's many heating, ventilation, and air conditioning subsidiaries.

In 1984, Elliot Lewis purchased Anderson Air Conditioning of Venice, followed by the purchase of Modern Air Conditioning in 1986. After successful efforts to retain the existing management in place at Anderson, it became clear that Modern needed more help.

Glennon moved to Southwest Florida in 1989, where he also assumed responsibility for Florida operations. His mission was to move the company away from new construction installation toward providing service to installed residential and commercial equipment.

"Our first obligation was to complete all Modern's outstanding construction contracts. In 90 years, Elliot-Lewis has never failed to complete a project," Glennon said. "At the same time, we began to focus on expanding our customer base for service of already existing HVAC systems."

Thus began the modern era at Modern. As the business grew, Glennon and his staff came to feel that the company's business was not just air conditioning; it was serving customers. Customer surveys indicated that 90 percent of the company's business was coming from its existing customer base, and these people also had other service needs that Modern could satisfy.

Supporting Philosophy

Since Modern already had systems in place to give customers prompt response for air conditioning service, they added trained technicians in electrical, plumbing, and appliance service and began to respond to customer needs in those areas.

"When a call for service comes in, our customer service representative determines what the problem is and the dispatcher assigns the appropriate technician to provide the necessary service," says Glennon. "We respond as promptly as possible, depending on the customer's availability and need."

Glennon indicated that the business philosophy of Modern and its staff is to view success like a three-legged stool. The first support function is to identify and meet or exceed the needs of the customers. The second is to meet the needs of the employees. The third is to meet the needs of the owners of the company. "You must do all three and do them in that order, or you will not succeed," says Glennon.

Proof of Modern's success with the second step is in an employee program that could be a model for all companies. Recently, Modern instituted an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) that will transfer 40 percent of the company's stock to employees over five years. The shares will be paid for through company profits, at no cost to the employee. This plan joins a 401(k) and profit-sharing plan already in place for years. Qualifying employee contributions to the 401(k) plan are matched at 50 percent by Modern, which also augments the plan with a percentage of each year's profits.

"Customers are our first priority. But employees come in a close second because we know that good, happy, well-trained, motivated employees are necessary to deliver the quality of customer service we are committed to provide," says Glennon.

As a result, the staff at Modern is remarkably stable. The company has 90 full-time employees, of which approximately 55 are technicians in the various categories of service the company offers. Although a relatively young company (founded in 1965) Modern has employees who have been on board for over 25 years, proving that management efforts reap benefits in the way of employee retention.

Promoting Staff

Promoting from within helps in that direction as well. Consider the career climb of Ken Sammons, who started with Modern as a service technician in 1979. He joined the company after a career in the U. S. Army. Soon he was promoted to technical advisor, then assistant service manager in Naples, then service manager, then vice president of service and sales, and last year, executive vice president.

"I tell people who join this company that they have come to a place where anyone who wants to work hard, improve their skills and serve the customer will have a long, satisfying and well-rewarded career," says Sammons. "The company provides ongoing technical and customer service training though various manufacturer programs and the Dale Carnegie Institute. And we meet at least once a month with the entire staff to reinforce the company's values and get feedback from employees."

Listening to the Customer

Modern also seeks feedback from its customers. A Service Evaluation card is left after every service call. It's postage paid so the customer can return the card without difficulty. An analysis of those cards indicated that Modern customers give the company high marks for prompt, dependable response, while industry research indicated that failure to be prompt and reliable is the main complaint customers have about other companies.

Responding to this opportunity, Modern recently implemented its Prompt Performance Guarantee. If Modern doesn't show up for a service appointment within two hours of when it is scheduled, it will pay the customer $30 for every hour or part thereof that it is delayed. "We are delivering the service, we know it is important, and we are doing it everyday," said Sammons, "Why not give the customer our guarantee that it will happen and lock in the commitment for us?"

"I used to be a pole vaulter in school," Glennon says. "When a vaulter gets over the bar at one level, the bar is raised. We think that is a good idea in business, too. We want to be the service provider others are judged by."

Most recently, the company's transformation to multiple-service provider has been reflected in an updating of the company's logo and identification system. "We've changed our name. We're now 'Modern Service for Home and Business.' We've repainted our trucks with sharper graphics and our 800 number so anyone who sees a Modern truck in Charlotte, Collier or Lee county will know who we are, what we do, and how to reach us," Glennon says.

Over the years, Modern has developed a special relationship with Amana, manufacturer of some of the nation's most dependable, energy-efficient appliances and air-conditioning systems. Glennon describes the relationship as one that evolved out of a common dedication to serving the customer. "Amana makes a quality product and has a strong manufacturer's warranty. Working together, we have become Amana's number one dealer in Florida and, at any given time, we could be fi